


Blood On The Bluegrass

by XxFandomTrashxX



Series: The Songs of Our Past Weigh a Heavy Toll On Our Future [5]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: AU and a fucking half, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Assassins, Based on a song, Blood and Violence, Canon-Typical Violence, Consensual Underage Sex, Dark Past, Dark Web, Fluff, Gay Sex, Hitmen, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Underage Sex, It might take a few chapters to meet the mains, M/M, No sex until later, Non-Graphic Violence, Nuka-World Amusement Park (Fallout), On Hiatus, Oral Sex, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Underage Sex, Polyamorous Character, Polyamorous Characters, Polyamory, Polygamy, Public Sex, Rape, Rape/Non-con Elements, Rough Sex, Semi-Public Sex, Sex, Smut, So buckle the fuck up, Song fic, Supernatural Elements, Tags Contain Spoilers, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, Underage Drinking, Underage Rape/Non-con, Underage Sex, Underage Smoking, deep web, despite his age, fuck the Institute, he wants all the dick, i took it too far, inspired by a song, my sole is a fucking slut, ok, this is going to be a long ride
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-22
Updated: 2019-10-06
Packaged: 2020-10-25 17:42:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20728217
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/XxFandomTrashxX/pseuds/XxFandomTrashxX
Summary: Harley (Sole Survivor) is caught in the web of lies and secrets of the dark web, faced with four groups of hit men and assassins to join, the Brotherhood of Steel, The Railroad, The Minutemen, and The Raiders, all of them having different morals, but all of them wanting to destroy The Institute, the secretive organization preforming experiments on people who aren’t mentally there and killing people who try an tell their secrets.





	1. Chapter 1

It’s an easy move, going from Kentucky, to Montana, to Massachusetts wasn’t fun, but it was easy. First off, Harley only has a backpack and two suitcases of stuff, one small and the other large, and secondly, he has no reason to stay in Kentucky, while he has a friend that he left in Montana, the reason he’s now in Massachusetts seems to be a more important matter to deal with, cut ties, go off the radar completely for a few months, then come back as a new persona, easy, at least for him, as he’s been doing this for at least six years. 

He sighs as he sits on the ground, his new apartment barren since he had to pack his bags and leave, who knew he’d ever come back to this state, this area... he sure didn’t, but here he is, beginning a new...ish... life. Pulling his laptop out of his backpack, he sets it on his lap, opening it and logging in before opening internet explorer, he has no deadlines right now, nor hits, so he decides to stay off of Tor for now and do some research on the four organizations he needs to become a part of, or at least get to know the leaders.

***

He sets the computer to the side after about three hours of research with no results, pulling his legs up to his chest and resting his forehead on his knees, the light from the surrounding buildings, streetlights, and passing cars illuminating his room, he checks his phone, the time being around 10 pm now, he decides to get up and go roam around the streets, despite living downtown now and that probably being one of the worst decisions he could make, he grabs his phone, wallet, and switchblade, tossing a pair of sunglasses and hat on before heading out.

The streets are pretty barren, cars driving down occasionally, but besides that, the road is dead, he pulls out his phone so he can look up restaurants in the area, looking around every few moments, scanning the area and trying to focus mainly on the noises of his surroundings so he doesn’t get jumped while looking for a nice place to eat. When he finally finds a place, as if on cue, he hears the sound of wood hitting concrete, heavy breathing following, and feminine whimpering, the sounds starting like a whisper in the back of his mind, but quickly becoming louder, he turns around when it sounds like it’s almost to him, phone now pocketed and hand on the switchblade in his sweatshirt pocket, a woman runs into him, almost knocking him over due to the force and size difference, Harley being a few inches shorter than her. 

“O-Oh God, I’m so so sorry..!” She quickly says, moving away as quick as possible, when Harley looks up, he examines her, noting that she looks tired and as though she had been crying.

“It’s quite fine, Ma’am, are you alright?” He asks, shifting slightly so he can look behind her and make sure she wasn’t being chased, or at least isn’t now.

“Um, y-es, I’m fine...” she says, wiping a forming tear her eye with the back of her hand.

“Are you sure? You don’t seem like it...”

“Yes, I do believe I am,” she says, now taking her turn to look behind her, she sucks in some air and slowly releases it, looking around before turning her attention back to Harley.

“May I accompany you back to your house to make sure you get home okay? You seem upset, and looked like you were being chased, and I’d like to make sure you weren’t and don’t get followed, if that’s okay with you, of course...” 

The woman bites her lower lip, a worried expression crossing her face before she nods, “That’d be quite alright with me,” she almost squeaks, looking slightly calmer, but still anxious.

Harley nods to himself, a small smile gracing his lips, “Alright then, lead the way and I’ll follow,” he says softly, making sure she knows that she’s safe and he isn’t going to harm her in any way.

She swallows harshly, exhaling shakily, a trembling smile appearing on her face as she begins to walk, Harley following close behind, leaving about three and a half feet behind her so they don’t hit each other and she doesn’t feel uncomfortable.


	2. Chapter 2

The walk to the woman’s residence is almost completely silent, the two sharing no words, and the only thing filling the absolute silence being cars passing and crickets chirping, but besides the people in their cars, the roads are barren, only with some people in back alleys that don’t pay the two any mind. Harley makes note of this, aspiring to come back out again some time and enjoy the chill air of September and noises of a dead city.

It takes around twenty minutes to get to the woman’s residence, Harley happy he came along as they walk down an alley, three large men standing at the other end, covered by the darkness of the night and barely noticeable, they stare at the two when they come down the alley, breaking off into a small gap with a pink illuminated sign outside of it reading ‘Valentine Detective Agency’, a door to the left at the end, the woman looks through her small side bag for her keys, pulling them out and putting them in the lock to open the door, she looks over to Harley, offering a small smile, “Please, do come in,” she says sweetly before entering, leaving the option up for grabs.

Harley takes a few moments to think it over before entering, cautious as he does so, he keeps his hand in his sweatshirt pocket on his switchblade, should he need it. Looking around, it’s a small room, two doors going into different rooms before him, but in the room he’s currently in, there are two chairs and a couch sitting beside a coffee table, a small tv mounted to the wall beside them, and a bookshelf on the other side of the room, completely filled with books, and an aquarium with tropical fish sitting on it, the door to the room on the right is shut, while the door to the room on the left is just a frame with a swinging gate on it, he’s able to see in, and from what he can see, there’s a staircase in the back, and the room there is a small kitchen. He stands beside the door for a few seconds, examining the room before closing the door and locking it.

He watches the woman hit the bottom step, now in different ware than earlier, changing from a bright pink dress and scarf with a pale grey jacket overtop to a light blue night dress, flowing and coming just below the knee, she smiles at him, “You can have a seat on the couch if you’d like, I’m going to start some tea, and I’ll be in,” she says, brushing her brown hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear.

Harley nods and sits on the couch, looking around the room a little more to see if he notices anything out of the ordinary, but finds nothing, he decides to focus on the fish and watch them swim around until she comes out, the boy glad that the lighting is dim and his sunglasses and hood cover most of his face. She walks over to the other side of the coffee table, placing a tray on it with honey, a bowl of sugar cubes, two tea cups, a kettle, and a small glass of assorted flavors to add to the tea, she grabs a blueberry packet and rips it open, pouring some of the boiling water into the teacups before setting the packet in one, making sure the string doesn’t fall in, she lets it sit, taking tongs and getting two sugar cubes, she takes her tea and sits, crossing her legs and blowing on it before taking a sip. Harley follows her actions, doing the same once she’d done, but choosing açaí and adding a spoonful of honey instead. 

“Thank you...” Harley starts, pausing when he realizes he never got her name.

“Ellie, Ellie Perkins..” she says with a smile.

“Ah, I’m Harley Sanchez,” he says, smiling back before taking a sip of his tea.

Ellie furrows her eyebrows, humming quietly, she leans forward to set her teacup back on the tray, “Are you new in town?” She asks curiously.

“Well, technically, yes, though I use to live here around.... six... years ago...?” He thinks for a moment before nodding in affirmation.

“Hm, well, I’m glad you came back, are you visiting or did you move?” 

“I moved here, came back from Montana, actually...”

“Montana, seems interesting, which part?”

“Hope County.”

“Hope County... doesn’t ring a bell, I’ll have to look it up sometime... anyways, what brings you here?”

“Work, and honestly, I never thought in a million years that I’d be back here...” he says with a nervous chuckle, setting his tea down.

“Work brings many people in and out of here, so that’s somewhat comforting...” She drums her fingers on the arm of the chair she’s sitting in.

They sit in silence for a few moments before Harley decides to ask a question, “So, I saw this was a detective agency?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah, I’m Nick’s secretary, he’s the one that does all the work, I just take notes, keep things organized, and help where I can,” she says, slightly sheepish.

“Oh, so you wouldn’t know anything about the Institute or-“

“Oh god, are you one of them?” Worry consumes her expression.

“No, no, no, I’m not, don’t worry, I’m here to figure out what’s really happening there, and I was wondering if anyone knew anything that might help me, it’s for work and also a sensitive topic, so I completely understand if you don’t want to talk about it...” he says quickly, not wanting to upset her.

She stares at him for a few beats, looking him up and down, her body loosens up slightly and her expression softens, “Sorry, it has everyone on edge, I don’t recommend bringing it up in a casual conversation to anyone else, they might actually do something if they believe you’re one of them... but I think that’s a question you should ask Nick or John, they’d know more.”

“I’m sorry, John?” Harley repeats the name, now confused.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot you’re more new to this area,” she chuckles softly, “he’s the mayor of a small town nearby called Goodneighbor, he’s very nice despite being eccentric and always wearing that weird costume... him and Nick are together often when the other isn’t working.”

“I’ll have to meet him sometime...”

“You really should, even visit Goodneighbor, it’s quite nice if you can get past the scent, like New Orleans after noon during the summer.”

“Hm... I think I will... I’ll figure out where it is and visit tomorrow night, I need to map out the area anyways,” he says finally with a smile.

Ellie nods, picking her cup back up and leaning back in her chair, beginning to drink her tea again, Harley follows her, lagging behind slightly, but still copying, as expected, Ellie finishes first, Harley finishing soon after, they set their cups on the tray, Ellie standing and taking it back into the kitchen once Harley is done before going back in to start talking to the young man again, asking him about his past and work, though he avoids the topic of his family and main occupation, he answers most every other question and asks a few of his own about the area, the agency, Nick, and her.

“Oh Jeeze, it’s already two thirty..” Ellie says, surprised by the time when she checks her watch, “you should probably get heading home so you won’t be tired when you go out tomorrow,” she says, looking back up at him.

“Yeah, I probably should...” he stands, Ellie standing and following him as he goes to the door, unlocking and opening it before going outside, he turns back to her, outstretching his hand and shaking hers, “Thank you for the tea and talk, I really enjoyed both.”

“Thank you too, as I did as well, I do hope you’ll come back some time,” she says with a smile, making a small noise, “wait a moment,” she mumbles before going back into the house, coming back a minute later with a piece of paper, “here’s my number, Nick’s number, and our work number, call us if you need to or feel lonely,” she says gleefully.

“Will do, I hope you have a good night.”

“You too, and I wish you safe travels.”

Harley smiles to himself as he leaves, Ellie watching him until he disappears before going back inside, closing and locking the door behind her.

Harley gets home thirty minutes later, having completely forgotten about being hungry, he empties his pockets on the counter in his kitchen, going into his room and lying on the floor, it takes a while before he falls asleep, but he eventually does, dreamless and dark, but none the less still sleep of some kind.


	3. Chapter 3

Harley wakes up at eleven am the next morning, lying on the floor staring at the ceiling for about twenty minutes before getting up, grabbing his laptop, and going into the kitchen, he sits on the counter while he goes onto the Internet Explorer and looks at furniture, ordering a Queen sized bed and some other items so his apartment isn’t barren, finishing with his selections around an hour and a half later before getting changed and ready to go out. He goes out and gets something to eat before going shopping for groceries and all the necessities, also getting a small backpack while he’s out and a pack of cigarettes, he takes the stuff back home (only having six more light than not bags) and unpacks everything, the time being around four pm when he finishes, he decides to map out the surrounding area, looking online to see shops and restaurants nearby, as well as do some research on Goodneighbor, when he sees that is in a dead and really shady area downtown, he makes a mental note to being his gun when he goes and grab a taxi on his way there.

6pm rolls around, the sun beginning to set and city dying, previously people and cars filled the now almost abandoned streets, nightfall seemingly terrifying to the people here as the remaining people are all running to get to wherever they’re going. Harley gets his sunglasses back on, clipping his holster to the inside of his pants, putting his pistol in it and making sure the safety is on before putting his switchblade, phone, keys, and wallet in his sweatshirt pocket before heading out, he walks until he passes a taxi, that being for around ten minutes. The man asks where he’s going, and when he says Goodneighbor, the driver looks visibly uncomfortable, saying he’ll drop him off two streets over, but he won’t get any closer, Harley happily agrees to his terms and they set off, Harley paying prior to them driving off, and listening to the soft purr of the engine, staring out of the window at the lights, slowly turning off, the sky a mix of purple, orange, and blue when he left, now a dark shade of these colors as he exits the vehicle, thanking the driver before shutting the door and heading in the direction he was told the town was in, and it doesn’t take long to see the lights, the dark streets illuminated by yellow and orange street lights, he steps up the cement stairs, appreciating the bright, glowing red sign reading ‘Goodneighbor’ resting on the metal arch he walks under, not only that, but fairy lights are strung on the buildings, almost all of the buildings open or at least the citizens awake as there are only a few windows with the lights out, and as Ellie had said, the scents of urine, marijuana, and burning tobacco all fill the air in a potent concoction of... something... though it doesn’t effect Harley much as he’s smelt worse, it still makes him scrunch up his nose slightly in disgust, not having expected to get so quickly taken by a scent as he approached the town slowly and had time to acclimate to something of this potency.

Looking to the right, there are two stores from what he can tell, a man sweeping outside of the one to the far end, and a darker skinned woman with black hair in the window of the other, seemingly cleaning it. There’s a large building to the left that he assumes is the Mayor’s office or something to that effect based on its size versus the size of everything else in the town, and a small street going between the office and stores, around the size of a sidewalk or alleyway. He notices three men talking in the alley, sidewalk, street thing, one in a white shirt, jeans, and sunglasses, another is in a tan trench coat, newsboy cap, jeans, and a green scarf, while the last is in colonial wear, his hair long, blonde, and curly, as well as pulled back into a ponytail, despite being covered by a pirate looking hat, it’s still visible and bright, especially with the lights reflecting off of it from the street lamps and fairy lights.

While Harley looks around the area to get a feel for the new area, a man approaches him, wearing a full black, leather jumpsuit from what Harley can tell when he finally looks at him.

“Hello, I assume you’re new to Goodneighbor, right?” He asks with a smile.

Harley looks him up and down, skeptical, he puts his hands in his sweatshirt pocket, “Yeah, I’m new to the area...” he says truthfully, but also with slight hesitation, but noting the people around him, he assumes the man won’t try anything.

“Then may I interest you in some insurance? Goodneighbor is a dangerous place, especially for a little lady such as yourself...” he states, something indescribable flashing in his eyes.

“Um, no, I can handle myself, though I do appreciate your concern...” Harley says, moving to walk away before the man moves to block his path, chuckling.

“That wasn’t really a question, pipsqueak...”

“I know, I just don’t care, now move or we’ll have an issue...” Harley notes the three in the alley now watching him and this man.

“Oh yeah? And what’re ya’ gonna do if I don’t?”

“You really want to know? I’ll cut off your dick and shove it down your throat.”

The man snorts, “Talkin’ big game for someone so tiny...”

“It’s not that big, I’m sure your dick is small enough that it’d be like taking a pill or something, I don’t expect much...”

The humor in the man’s face disappears, replaced by something of anger, “Now you listen here you little prick, you’re gonna pay up or imma put a bullet in your skull, alright?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, it’s the fucking same as always, shut your trap and fuck off, I’m sure you’d piss yourself if you even saw a real gun...”

The other man huffs, stepping back with one foot and pulling a revolver from seemingly nowhere as Harley stares directly into his eyes, he takes the gun and points the barrel at his forehead, “Fuckin’ pay up.”

Harley raises an eyebrow, “You didn’t even cock it... and I’d bet my money on it that it’s empty...” he says, expression and tone bored as he stares at his attacker.

“I- it’s fucking full and I don’t need to cock this!” He growls.

“Then pull the trigger, bro, I don’t fear Death...” he says, as though his life isn’t on the line, noticing the darker skinned man walking over towards him.

“I will! I’m giving you another chance to just hand you’re wallet over and walk outta here unscathed!” 

“Hey, hey, hey, what’s goin’ on here..?” The new man asks, voice raspy, the American flag around his waist flowing with each step, he looks from Harley to his attacker, blue eyes seeming like they’re piercing through Harley’s sunglasses and staring into his soul despite the short amount of time they rest on him, and more specifically, his eyes.

The attacker drops the line of his weapon, looking over to stare at the man in the wrong century, “This newcomer threatened me, I was just tryna defend myself!” He says defensively.

Harley stares down at his hand with the gun, seeing that everyone seems to be indifferent about the gun being visible, he assumes it’s not illegal to use on here, in which case....

Harley takes his hands out of his pockets, kicking straight up into his attacker’s shin, the man yelling in pain and dropping to his knees, he hisses, Harley taking his own gun out and pointing it at the man’s head, staring at the other man, he switches between the two, gun one man’s head and limiting most of his movements, “Who the fuck are you and are you going to threaten me too, now?” He asks, staring at the man in red, seemingly unfazed by the situation as he only sounds confused, as though someone forgot to put ice in his lemonade.

“Woah, Jesus fuck, way to make an entrance, show everyone who’s boss around here?” The man chuckles, “I’m Mayor John Hancock, and that’s Finn, one of the dumbasses that reside here.”

“Can I shoot him? Or will I get arrested?”

“Go ahead ‘n shoot ‘m, he’s a bastard and an all around waste of oxygen...”

Harley searches John’s face, seeing that he doesn’t seem to be lying, he looks down at Finn, cocking the gun.

“You’re not gonna be the mayor for much longer, John, an’ you know it...” he grumbles, the man it’s directed towards snorting and looking away, Harley pulls the trigger, the sound of a small explosion, squelching, and a loud thump following, and the smell of gunpowder mixing with the rest of the scents. Harley brings the gun back closer to his body, putting the safety back on and blowing on the metal, he pulls out a handkerchief and cleans the blood off of the end of it, aspiring to clean the inside out when he gets home, he puts the handkerchief and gun away.

“So, would you like a drink?” John asks after a few moments, smile on his face.


	4. Chapter 4

Walking through Goodneighbor, though a short trip since John’s leading him to the bar, Harley notes the people outside next to fires or in alleys, as well as the makeshift housing some people appear to be staying in. The men that had been talking to the mayor had vanished, only appearing again when they get down to the bar, order their drinks, and go into the VIP lounge, the two staring at Harley and John, John seemingly not noticing it, and Harley just watching them out of the corner of his eye as they walk over to a couch diagonal to the strangers, those four being the only ones currently occupying the room.

“So, what brings you to Goodneighbor, kid?” John asks, taking the wrapping and lid off of the bottle of vodka he requested and taking a large gulp.

“Just curious...” Harley says simply, watching the mayor as he takes a small sip of bourbon from his glass.

John chuckles, “Y’know, curiosity killed the cat...”

“Mhm, but one thing most people forget was that the cat came back.”

A confused expression flickers on his face, one eyebrow raised, he smiles again, leaning back on the couch, “Curiosity is all that brings you to such a wondrous little slice of paradise? Should I be thanking Fate?”

“I-...” Harley falters, uncomfortable with the persons mentioned, but clears his throat and works past it, “Nick Valentine? His secretary told me you two usually spent time together and that you were the two to ask about the area and ongoings around here...”

“Haha! Good ol’ Nicky and Ellie... Yeah, we usually hang out together, though he just seems to get a kick out of watching me when I get drunk... though personally, can’t blame ‘im...” he takes another drink, “Left this morning though, said he’s staying back at the agency for a week or two because of the influx of cases he’s been gettin’.”

“Oh, okay, I’ll have to head back over there sometime so I can meet him.”

“Yeah, he’s a really nice guy, bit of a pessimist, but still pretty cool, I mean, as cool as a detective can be...”

“So I’ve heard...” Harley falls silent, still watching the strangers in the room, he sighs and decides to ask a different question, “Have you ever heard of the Railroad or Raiders or anything like that? I’m new here and was pretty scared when I heard about the two groups, the Minutemen seem to be okay though, since there isn’t much news fluctuating around them and the leader is nice... and the media might be blowing it out of proportion like everything else...” he says quietly, looking directly at John, though he notices the sound of moving from the other side of the room, though he writes it off as them being uncomfortable.

John stares at Harley for a moment before his eyes flicker over to the corner the noise came from, then down to rest on his bottle, “Uh, yeah, um...” he furrows his eyebrows.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to talk about it,” Harley says softly, hesitating, but gently placing his hand on John’s, he seems really confused by the gesture, so Harley chuckles nervously and pulls his hand back, “Sorry... I haven’t really been around anyone in around... a year... and by choice... five years, give or take... so it’s been a while, plus I’ve never had to fully interact with other beings, besides fighting...”

“What do you mean by that?” John asks, now really confused.

“I um.. it’s a long story, I don’t want to bother you with the details...” he says impishly, scratching the back of his neck and smiling nervously, “Uh... anyways... I’ll get out of your way and just go back home, I don’t want to waste anymore of your time and I can just track them down and find out myself, my life doesn’t mean that much to anyone anyways, and many innocent people are dying because of the bullshit everyone turns a blind eye to since they aren’t willing to put their lives on the line to help others.” He sighs sadly as he stands, leaving, he stops at the doorway, turning back, “I hope you have a good night, Mayor, as well as you two...” he says with a small smile, looking back to the people as he speaks to them before turning back to leave, taking his glass to the bar and making his exit, keeping his head low and hand in his sweatshirt pocket as he leaves.

He gets about two blocks away before someone grabs him by the shoulder, pulling him back into an alley, and slamming him against the brick wall harshly, his hands fall out of his pocket, getting whiplash from the sudden stop, he stands there, dazed and vision slightly blurry, he can make out two figures, familiar colors, and the feeling of metal against his neck, it takes him a few moments, but he regains his senses and his eyes refocus, the two men from earlier standing before him, the man in the trench coat standing directly in front of him, holding him against the wall, with a knife to his throat, while the man in the white T-shirt leans against the wall across from them, taking a drag from his cigarette before dropping it on the ground and stepping on it. 

“Why do you want to know about the factions? Don’t you know it isn’t smart to go around asking questions like that? Fu-Freaking Institute scum...” the main assaulter bites.

“I’m not from the Institute, bitch, I know it isn’t smart, but I need answers,” Harley snaps back.

“Why? None of this concerns you.”

“Because, I’m trying to bring down the Institute, one step at a time, gain the trust of all those troops and you can get places, more intel, more knowledge, find a mole, figure out how to get in there, kill the leader, quite simple, actually...”

“All the groups you mentioned have leaders...”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know how organizations work, kill the leader or befriend them, again, simple.”

“Kill the leaders and you’ll have enemies of the troops,” the man in white states.

“I highly doubt the raiders will try an kill someone that was able to murder their past leader, and besides that, I don’t plan on killing the leader of the Railroad or Minutemen, I want the least casualties possible, less bodies, the harder it is to track me and arrest me, god, that can’t happen...” he looks to the side, horror flashing on his face for a split second.

The two attackers stare at him for a few moments before the one holding him back speaks, “Take his glasses off, Deacon, we can bag him for now and I can take him back to the overboss in the morning.”

Deacon exhales, moving forward to grab Harley’s glasses despite wearing a pair of his own.

“Fucking touch them and I will murder the both of you,” Harley hisses, breathing catching as he tries to figure out how to escape, not able to move his head and too worried to kick either of them because of the weapon, he realizes this is what’s going to happen.

“That’s a lot of talk for someone in the position you’re in right now...” Deacon says, taking Harley’s glasses off and grabbing a burlap sack from the other assaulter, getting ready to put it on his head, the other stops him, “What’s wrong, Mac-...” the two stare at his face, a large, thick scar going across his face, his yellow-gold eyes glimmering in the moonlight, cheeks and nose a light shade of pink due to the cold.

“Jesus Christ...” the pair says quietly and in unison. 

It takes Harley a few moments, but he catches on and closes his eyes, swallowing harshly, the sharp blade cutting his Adam’s apple slightly.

Mac pulls the blade away from his neck, letting Deacon put the bag on his head, “Do you have any ropes?” Mac asks

“No, why would I think we were going to come across someone like this? Tonight of all nights?”

“I don’t know, I just thought your fu-fricking prepare for once...”

“You don’t kidnap someone every day! Especially not someone this young, you dick, who would prepare for this?”

“Speaking of which... how old are you?” He asks, remembering the handkerchief in his pocket, he pulls it out, wrapping it around his wrists tightly.

Harley stays silent, Mac punching him in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain, an action which Mac cuts off by pushing him back up against the wall, “How old are you?” He repeats.

“Twenty-two,” he chokes out though gasps.

“Don’t lie to me,” Mac growls, winding his fist up to punch Harley again, Deacon stops him, shaking his head.

“How old are you, kiddo?” Deacon asks in a softer tone, trying to gain his trust through his tone despite everything he’s done.

“Fucking bite me,” Harley snarls.

“Ooo, so scary, tiny boy wants you to bite him,” Mac says with a chuckle.

Deacon smacks him, “Shut up you prick,” he says, warning in his tone. “What about your name?” He asks Harley, voice calm again.

Harley still remains silent, Deacon sighing as he tries his best to keep his composure, “Just throw him in the backseat, we can ask him later since you still have to drop me off at HQ...” he says, lifting his glasses ever so slightly and pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Will do, but don’t blame me if he gets a rib broken or something...” Mac grumbles, jerking Harley away from the wall and leading him to their car, three blocks away from their current location, Deacon following behind, Mac opens the trunk, Deacon glaring at him, Mac rolls his eyes and sighs, closing the trunk and putting Harley in the backseat, he slams the door behind him before getting in the driver’s seat, and Deacon in the passenger’s seat.


	5. Chapter 5

Harley sits in the back seat, shifting uncomfortably after having been forced into the car and hit his back on the frame of the car on the way in, the radio is on and he can hear Deacon and Mac’s voices, though the words are drowned out by the music, he can still make out their existence. After a few minutes of the two upfront talking and the one in the back wriggling to get his hands free, Harley successfully removes his wrist from the binding, the volume of the music going down afterwards, he keeps his hands together as though he didn’t just separate them and stares directly ahead, able to see Deacon turning back to him through the semi-transparent fabric. 

“Alright, here’s the deal, answer our questions, and we won’t take you to the Raiders, okay?” He asks, voice calm but stern.

“Yeah, sure, whatever...” Harley mumbles.

“What’s your name?”

“Harley.”

“Age?”

“Twenty-two.”

Deacon sighs, “Anyone with eyes can tell that’s a lie, ‘Harley’...” he says, sounding frustrated.

“Alright, alright, just don’t threaten me with that butter knife again...” he hears a grunt of disapproval, followed by the sound of fabric rustling, watching as Mac turns to face him, Deacon stopping him midway and staring at him, assumably threatening him silently, this making Harley smile he ever-so-slightly. “Seventeen,” he says after a few beats, Mac sounding like hes choking after the statement.

“Oh, great... assault, kidnapping, and child abuse... Fuck, Des is going to have my ass...” Deacon mumbles.

“We can’t take him to the Raiders, he’ll get murdered, or worse!” Mac rasps after recovering to an extent.

“Yeah, no shit, Sherlock.”

“I’m heading those ways in any case, let me hitch a ride, I can give you both blowjobs after and we can go on a date before calling it a day and heading our separate ways, I promise, it’ll be great...” Harley says, sarcasm heavy in his voice.

Deacon laughs, taking it seriously, “Jesus, no, you’re underage and trying to murder our people, that will never happen.”

“Awe, I don’t bite, the people I kill do, but I don’t... unless you’re into that, in which case....”

“Stop it, kid, you’re not getting anywhere with that, we’ll have to drop you off somewhere or get rid of you...” Mac says, now sounding concerned.

Deacon has his head in his hands, Mac focusing on the road at this moment in time, and with the two not paying attention, Harley takes the chance, taking the sack off his head and grabbing the gun from his holster, he puts it to the base Deacon’s skull, Mac seconds behind him at pointing his gun at Harley’s head.

“Oh my god, put the gun down, MacCready, you wouldn’t take a child’s life, and you know it...” Deacon states, not moving.

“I would! I’m not a whimp, death fears me.”

“I know Death personally, she doesn’t fear me, we’re friends at this point...” Harley says in a joking, not joking way.

“Okay, fine, I’ll put it away, what do you want, Harley?” MacCready asks, obviously pissed as he puts his gun away.

“Drop me off at the Valentine Detective Agency, you heard me earlier, so I have no fear in saying it again.”

“Nick will hate you, you’re a fu-“

“Shut up, Robert...” Deacon warns.

“‘Shut up, Robert...’,” Mac repeats in a mock tone. “There’s a gun to my friend’s head, it’d be nice if that were to be removed?” He asks after a few minutes of silence, save for their breathing and the sound of the engine.

“Oh, yeah, sure, but know I’m still going to have it pointed at his head, just at a farther distance, since it’s the least I can do for my assaulters, Robert and Deacon... fun names.... well, not yours, Bobby, but I quite like the name Deacon, despite its connections with religion, it’s a fun name, rolls right off the tongue... Dee could be your nickname... hm...” Harley leans back as he speaks, originally directing his statements at the two, he begins to trail off, now talking to himself, “I wonder if your lover would ever say ‘Hey Dee, give me the D!’... that’d be fun... and confusing... but fun too...” he smiles to himself, watching the two upfront.

Deacon looks like he’s wondering how he got in this situation and is hating every second of it, eyebrows furrowed and mouth a straight, narrow line on his face, whereas MacCready is fuming, clenching the steering wheel tightly, knuckles white at this point, and an expression of utter disgust and anger on his face.

Arriving at the agency doesn’t take too terribly long, but it feels like an eternity to all of them, every second feeling like an hour, and when they finally pull up beside the alley, Harley puts his weapon away, taking his glasses back and putting them on again, Deacon and Robert sigh in relief as he gets out of the car.

“Hey, I’ll see you two soon,” he says with a smile before closing the door and strutting off, his form disappearing into the darkness, Mac not letting them stay long enough to see him become illuminated by the pink light, the two of them driving off before anything else could happen.

Harley gets up to the door, knocking on it a few times... no answer. So he knocks a little harder... still no answer. When he raises his fist for the third time,there’s a clicking sound behind the door, a few moments later, it opens, a man standing at the door, this man wearing a white button up, black slacks, and a bow tie, the tie undone and messily hanging around his neck, his jet black hair is pushed back out of his face, sticking up and also messy, a cigarette resting between his lips, “May I help you?” He asks, raising an eyebrow at the smaller man.


	6. Chapter 6

The two stand there for a few moments before the man asks again, “May I help you?” Now sounding annoyed, if anything, bright blue eyes staring at the seventeen year old.

Harley swallows harshly, “Um, yeah, sorry, are you the detective? Nick Valentine?”

“Look, kid, we’re closed for the night, come back later,” he says exasperatedly, shutting the door when Ellie walks over and sees Harley, though only for a second. 

The door shuts, only to open a few moments later, Ellie now standing before the door, “Hello, Harley, come in!” She says with a smile, Harley obeying after a few beats, coming in, he waits for Ellie, her leading him over to the couch and gesturing for him to sit, a request which he obeys, Nick nowhere in sight right now. “Here, give me a moment and I’ll be back,” she says with a smile, entering the room on the right, the one that was closed the day prior.

Harley can hear the feint noise of voices after the door closes, he can’t make out what they’re saying, as usual, but he can still hear them. He sits quietly, shifting ever so slightly so his back isn’t touching anything.

Ellie emerges from the room a few minutes later, Nick following behind, she sits beside Harley while Nick sits across from him.

“This, as you must’ve deduced, is Detective Nick Valentine,” Ellie says with a smile.

“Nice to meet you, Mister Valentine,” Harley says, outstretching his hand for the detective to shake.

Nick does as expected and shakes Harley’s hand, “So you want to learn about the factions and Institute?” He asks.

“Main goals, leaders, and enemies of the factions, and the Institute’s main goal with their whole... thing...”

Nick hums quietly, nodding and leaning back in the chair, “The three factions are the Railroad, the Raiders, and the Minutemen, their leaders are Desdemona, Overboss Colter, and Preston Garvey, respectively. For who their enemies are? Everyone hates the Railroad and Raiders, but the Minutemen has openly done enough for the people to prove their worth... and as for the Institute, despite having been to the headquarters and.... helped... I know nothing about them, like everyone else...”

“They helped you? With what?” Harley asks, now intrigued.

“I don’t want to talk about it...” Nick replies, obviously greatly disturbed by whatever happened or at least the memories of it.

“Sorry....” Harley says quietly, head dropping, he stares at the ground for a moment before exhaling and pulling his head back up, “I understand your hesitance sharing any of your past, not only that, but also any fear you may have that lingers, especially with a complete stranger, though one thing I can almost guarantee is that I personally would never judge you or harm you unless you were intentionally hurting other people or creatures.... I’ve dealt with people like you before, and have my own problems, but you see, I’ve tried to help myself by helping others find peace and accept who they are, no matter how hard it may be to do so...” he says honestly, getting slightly teary as he speaks, but ignoring it.

“‘Other people like me’? What is that supposed to mean?”

“Creatures that hold onto one memory, someone they loved or something they couldn’t be or do, and I help them come to terms with the outcome, put the memory to rest, along with the ghosts that followed...”

“I... creatures? What are you? A monster hunter?” He asks, chucking.

“Yes, I guess you could say that...” He says with a hesitant smile.

“Well then, I’m sure you’ll find many ‘monsters’ here, thieves and murderers fill the streets and lurk in the dark around here, you would probably have a blast taking out the trash around here... plus, it’d probably help you achieve your main goal in the end.”

“Maybe... well, I appreciate you taking the time to speak to me, Detective, and thank you for letting me in, Miss Perkins,” he says as he stands.

“Please, just call me Ellie,” she says with a smile.

“And you can just call me Nick.”

“Oh, sorry, I’ll have to remember, anyways, I’ll get out of your hair, have a good night,” he says as he makes his way over to the door, opening it and stepping out.

“Have a good night, Kid,” Nick says.

“Be safe!” Ellie yells at him, waving frantically.

Harley smiles, waving back, “Will do, Ellie” he says happiness before shutting the door and starting on his way back home, hoping he’ll have enough time and the mental capacity to register and think about everything that took place today.


End file.
